The 1970s saw Halfpenny Pictures go international with their productions, sourcing directors from across America and Europe and providing them with bigger budgets than they were accustomed in a bid to flood the market with the Halfpenny brand. One such director was famed Italian filmmaker … Continue readingBuzzkill (1978)
The Snow Ballroom stars Sinatra as Jake Nesbitt: a former mobster on the run from his enemies and in possession of a briefcase of stolen money, who takes refuge at a ski resort hoping to hide from his pursuers. When it turns out that there … Continue readingThe Snow Ballroom(1959)
In 1978, John Carpenter’s Halloween proved to be a surprise smash hit and almost singlehandedly ushered in a trend of slasher movies that would last through the 80s and even have a brief revival in the 90s thanks to Wes Craven’s Scream movies. The following … Continue readingStabbings (1979)
Tapping into the booming home video market, Halfpenny Pictures produced numerous direct-to-VHS (and briefly Beta) movies throughout the 1980s and 1990s, most of which were horror. One such film was Serpentine (1987), adapted from a W.G. Cline short story about a cursed artifact which transforms … Continue readingSerpentine (1987)
Gothic horror films saw a boom in the 1930s, with classic horror novels such as Frankenstein and Dracula being adapted for the big screen by Universal Pictures. Unable to afford the rights to any of the best known stories, Halfpenny Pictures decided instead to follow … Continue readingForbidden Serum (1932)
The 1980s slasher craze saw the rise of independent horror filmmakers producing their own films on 16mm celluloid. One such movie was Scum Fair, a film about a traveling country carnival run by a murderous psychopath called “The Carnie,” who preyed on hapless attendees and … Continue readingScum Fair (1980)
The 1990s saw a boom of straight-to-VHS action movies which were also frequently played on television. Not one to overlook a film trend, Francis Amberton II bought five screenplays to be made into movies specifically for the home video market. The first of these was … Continue readingAdrenaline Rush (1995)
By the 1970s, Halfpenny Pictures had begun funding international productions shot outside their UK studios. One of their early films shot in the United States of America was The Killa Called Vanilla – a Rudy Ray Moore / Pam Grier vehicle that hoped to cash … Continue readingThe Killa Called Vanilla (1978)
With the era of silent comedy in full swing, Francis Amberton knew that he had to find a slapstick star to compete with the likes of Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton. That star came in the form of Australian performer Harold “Snub” Pollard who, by … Continue readingThe Cheese Stands Alone (1922)
On the 20th anniversary of their first collaboration, Amberton and Hardcastle commissioned a new logo for the studio and officially renamed “Halfpenny Orpheum” as “Halfpenny Pictures.” This name is still in use today, although the studio logo would continue to evolve over time.